Paige's February Blog

2011-02-10

Working as part of a team is a given in nearly all organizations - DECA especially. Often individual goals have to be deferred to meet team goals. Plus, working with others requires lots of patience and understanding. When teams are working well, it can be very enjoyable and bonding experience. Strong friendships often result and it can produce many long-term career benefits. Most people enjoy working with others. After all, a human is a social animal! It is important to understand that a work team is a very powerful beast, and when functioning well, teams can be highly productive and very effective. On the other hand, a very dysfunctional team can have equally destructive effects on both the organization and the individual. This makes it crucial to get teams working well together as soon as possible.

The meaning of team is something that I have learned this past month. I think our mid-year meeting as a National Officer team really inspired me and opened my eyes to the truly amazing team that we have become. We have become this through hard work and dedication to the organization and to the state associations that we each represent. And I have seen great State Officers teams evolve within my region because of the hard work that they out into their state and into their members.

As a team we laugh together, we cry together, we bicker with each other, and we disagree; but in the end, we will always have a bond with each other, and that makes us family. Being a family has made us productive in what we are trying to accomplish and it has helped us to better connect with all of the members. My team has been with me throughout this journey and I will forever hold that bond and those memories with them. We have each had our own traveling experiences and we are each different leaders in our own way, but the few times that we come together throughout the year makes everything worth it. Our mid-year meeting made me realize that there is no other group of people that I would have chosen to go through this journey with, and I am truly grateful for that.

It is hard because I know at the end of the year we will each have to go our separate ways, but I hope that the memories that we share together will help our paths to cross again. And I hope all of you as members take the time to cherish the bonds that you have with the people in your lives. Whether it’s in DECA or whether it’s a long lasting relationship that you have, take time to reflect on what it really means to you.

Thank you,
Paige Dorman